French protests turn to rioting and looting as 1,200 are arrested and 150 police injured
Shops were looted and buildings set on fire in many French cities during nationwide protests against the rising cost of living, and Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu condemned “violence of extreme intensity.”
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Nationwide protests in France on October 17 turned into rioting and looting in many cities, with about 1,200 people arrested and 150 police officers injured, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said, condemning “violence of extreme intensity,” according to AFP, the BBC and CBC.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 550,000 people took part in marches across the country, including 110,000 in Paris, against the rising cost of living, conditions in secondary schools, fuel prices and cuts to public services. The CGT union, which joined the protests, put turnout at 800,000. Most marches were peaceful, but as the day went on masked groups torched cars and attacked shops and buildings.
AFP reported that dozens of supermarkets, pharmacies, luxury boutiques, clothing and electronics stores were looted in Paris, Marseille, Nice, Nantes, Bordeaux, Limoges, Lille, Toulouse and Strasbourg. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire said whole streets in the capital “have been devastated.” Limoges’ town hall, more than 140 years old, was largely destroyed by fire, town halls in Marseille and Lille were broken into and vandalised, and Lyon’s historic tourist office was set ablaze. Lyon Mayor Grégory Doucet called it “a tragedy” for the city.
In Saint-Étienne, a 17-year-old protester lost his right hand to a grenade. The local prosecutor opened an investigation into the cause of the injury and handed it to the police inspectorate, the IGPN. Earlier this month, a 15-year-old student in Lens lost a hand in a similar incident.
President Emmanuel Macron said there was “no place for violence” and vowed that vandals and looters would be prosecuted and punished. Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of La France Insoumise, said the demonstrations had been peaceful and criticised the police response.
Secondary school students in France have protested for weeks over staff shortages and run-down facilities, and on Saturday they were joined by trade unions and other movements, including the “yellow vests.” Macron’s term ends next year, and the presidential election due in April 2027 is deepening political uncertainty.
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